Since the advent of contact lenses, it has been the practice to store the lenses in container-like lens storage devices. In the case of the so-called soft contact lenses, the practice has been to provide for the use of a disinfecting or sterilizing solution, and/or a rinsing solution which can be poured into and out of the storage device for cleaning the lenses, disinfecting the lenses, and then rinsing the disinfecting solution from the lenses, or neutralizing the disinfecting solution remaining on the lenses. In the case of the hard lenses, it is only necessary to provide a cleaning means, such as a sponge or cloth impregnated with a detergent or the like, and some sort of rinsing solution to remove the cleaner.
Recently, a sterilizing or disinfecting treatment for soft contact lenses has been proposed, which utilizes an aqueous hydrogen peroxide solution as a sterilizing or disinfecting solution, and following the immersion of the lenses in such a solution, and the removal from such solution, the lenses are immersed in a neutralizing solution to turn the residual disinfecting solution into a saline solution. This is accomplished by, for example, using a neutralizer which decomposes the residual hydrogen peroxide into oxygen and water, the neutralizer containing a salt, which makes the resulting water saline. Examples of such a system are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,521,375 and 4,568,517. Another recently developed system of the same type provides, as the sterilizing solution, a saline hydrogen peroxide solution, and the container-like device is provided with a catalyst, for example platinum, so that when the hydrogen peroxide and salt solution is poured into the device, the platinum, acting as a catalyst, decomposes the hydrogen peroxide into water and oxygen, leaving the saline solution as the storage solution.
These systems, for both soft and hard lenses, have, to date, been used with containers which, after they have been used, are cleaned out, by rinsing with water, for example, and then reused over and over again. There is some danger of a buildup of microorganisms in the containers which is particularly bad where the soft lenses are being treated.
It is desirable, however, to provide for a single-use package which can be used once and then discarded. This is very useful, for example, for persons who are traveling, or persons who need to clean, sterilize or disinfect their contact lenses when they are away from the place where the reusable container device is kept.